Here's The Timeline For Darien Traffic Light

DARIEN, IL – It could take another year before a Darien intersection with its share of crashes gets a traffic light.

In March, the City Council approved a signal for Clarendon Hills Road and 67th Street.

At Monday's City Council meeting, Alderman Lester Vaughan, who represents the area in question, asked about the status of the light.

Dan Gombac, the city's municipal services director, said the project is being engineered. The city expects to go out to bid within four to six weeks.

But Gombac said traffic signal manufacturers are about a year behind on orders.

"Keep in that once the bids are opened, the signals will be ordered. But I do not anticipate seeing a signal on that corner until the first quarter of next year at best, if not the second," Gombac said.

Mayor Joseph Marchese said he recently witnessed a near-crash at the intersection. A signal, he said, would solve a lot of problems.

"It's a shame that it won't be until the first quarter of next year," Marchese said.

Alderman Joe Kenny said he originally believed landscaping at the house on the northeast corner obstructed drivers' views, possibly causing crashes.

But he said the crashes have continued, despite the removal of a lot of the shrubbery.

"When I'm wrong, I'll admit I'm wrong," Kenny said.

The intersection has stop signs at 67th, but not Clarendon Hills Road. A 2019 study indicated a traffic light or four-way stop was unwarranted.

For a long time, Vaughan has urged the city to install a light. The city indicated the number of crashes at the intersection in some years called for a signal.